A Revelation in the Light of Day: Hierro
by Wyvernhail
Summary: There was a gaping hole where her heart used to be, but even in all her darkness there was always the hope of the light of a new day. Unexpectedly he crossed her path, the one with the heart of iron, the one that was just as damaged as she was. AU
1. Dawn

_**A/N:**_ This is my first attempt at writing about Sakura and it will be challenging for me because as some of you know… I'm not a big fan of her. I'm sorry. With that being said, I think this story will help me like her a little more…? I think she has a lot of potential as a character, but sometimes I get so annoyed with her! Anyway, this is another story in the _A Revelation in the Light of Day _series and yes you guessed it. It's Sakura and Grimmjow centric. I only found three other stories with them. Let's hope this number increases. My goal by the end of this story: to like Sakura a lot more maybe pretty close to Hinata and Orihime, they're my favorite. You don't have to read any of the stories in the series in any particular order, they all sort of go hand in hand.

_**Rating:**_ **M** for future lemons. I have yet to write my first one, but I will get there. Let's see which out of my four current stories will be the first one. I'm sooo excited and can hardly wait! Also for language, I might throw in a few bad words here and there, especially when Grimmjow is introduced which will be fun!

_**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Naruto or Bleach. Sadly Grimmjow is not real, if he were… well he'd be locked up in my room ready to…. at all times.

_**Dawn**_

She had absolutely no idea what she was going to do. She was still in denial. After years of waiting for him, after years of watching him from the sidelines she had finally lost him. If she were to truly be honest with herself she would admit that she never had him to begin with. He would never see her as more than a fan girl.

Sakura Haruno had been in love with Sasuke Uchiha since they were kids. Naruto, Sasuke, and her had grown up together and had become real good friends— if you were looking from the outside in. Not many knew of the love triangle that had been going on for years. Sakura loved Sasuke but he didn't love her. Naruto loved Sakura but she didn't love him. It was all some twisted joke. It had to be.

When she looked back on the first years, she hated to admit it but she had been another one of his fan girls. Who wouldn't be? And that's what had ruined her chances from the start. Over the years as she got closer to him, she became less obsessive and her feelings turned into love, but it was too late for her. His image of her would be forever tarnished. She was just a fan girl, a friend of his and closer to him in ways that others only dreamed of, but still a fan girl nonetheless.

When they entered Karakura High School together that reality was only reinforced. With high school came new experiences and new friends. She was glad she had met new friends— that were girls to be more specific— she loved having both Naruto and Sasuke as her constant companions but there were just some things you couldn't share with them. She wasn't limited to just one best friend, that role was saved for Hinata, Ino, Orihime, Tatsuki, and… Tenten.

Things started to change when Sasuke's intentions toward Tenten started to shift into something else. Sasuke had never showed interest in _any_ girl and it had even been rumored that he was gay. Of course he wasn't! She just hated that it was somebody else who had his attention. She couldn't hate Tenten, they were friends and she cared about the brunette a lot. She wondered many times why Hinata didn't hate her for having Naruto's affection, and now she knew. She finally understood why after everything that happened Orihime couldn't hate Rukia and had only become closer to her… as if she hadn't broken her heart when Rukia fell in love with Ichigo.

Tenten had never been one of Sasuke's fan girls and perhaps that's what had made her stand out from the rest. She wasn't the only one that wasn't attracted to him; Hinata loved Naruto, Orihime was trying to get over Ichigo, and Tatsuki… well she didn't really like boys, not that she liked girls either, but no boy had gotten her attention yet. Sakura could only guess that the right one hadn't come along for the tomboy yet.

Tenten was not a girly girl. Tenten was a bit of a tomboy. She wasn't anything like Tatsuki had been when they were younger, when they reached their junior year the martial arts expert had blossomed, for lack of a better word. While Tatsuki had been a member of the karate club, and was now an assistant instructor at the dojo, Tenten favored weapons. Tenten was an avid member of the kendo club since the school didn't really allow them to use anything that could actually hurt the students. Sakura had seen the brunette's impressive weapons collection, the girl really did love them. Despite her being a tomboy, Tenten was still pretty in her opinion. She wore her long brown hair in buns on the sides of her head, had lightly tanned skin, and big chocolate brown eyes. She was about her height and had a similarly built body as hers. Tenten was not voluptuous like Orihime or Hinata, but had the toned body someone that trained physically daily would.

Sakura knew about Sasuke's feelings towards Tenten in fact she knew she wasn't the only one from their group of friends, but she never thought that he would ever make them known. Her biggest fear became a reality on the last day of school. They had all walked out together and were busy talking about their plans for the summer. When she neared the gates she spotted the Uchiha looking as bored as ever listening to Naruto go on and on. She was hoping he would notice her, but to her disappointment he didn't. He did however, notice Tenten walking up with Hinata, Orihime, and Tatsuki.

From a distance she just watched, waiting to see hat would happen. She saw him give Tenten a rare smile, something that even she never got from him. She saw her face brighten up at the pure sight of him and saw as he became nervous when the brunette looked at him. She heard him to speak to her, "Uh… Tenten? Can I talk to you for a moment?"

It was then that she felt it. She had a feeling he would tell her. Somehow she just knew. He would finally tell her that he loved her and hope that she only felt the same way. Everything was so wrong! There he was, the stoic Uchiha, becoming flustered about some girl and it wasn't even her! How could this happen? Why was this happening? It wasn't supposed to be like this! She had loved him for as long as she could remember yet he never felt the same way about her. She felt her willpower slowly come crashing down. She felt the stinging in the back of her eyes of tears threatening to come. Then she was shaken awake by the feeling of being pulled away. She realized that it had been Ino who was taking her away.

Sasuke and Tenten had been gone and she wondered how long she had stood there, wallowing in her pain. Seconds? Minutes? She wasn't sure. All she knew was that she was glad that the blonde was pulling her away.

The next two weeks she spent in a state of denial. She hadn't heard anything from her friends about Sasuke and Tenten, and if they were indeed together. She didn't even want to ask; she didn't want to know, but she knew that she would find out soon enough. Their trip to the beach was scheduled for next week, and she really wasn't looking forward to it.

A few days before the trip, Sakura received an unexpected visitor. She had been lounging around all day and was still wearing her pajamas. When she opened the door, her eyes widened in surprise for at her doorstep stood the person she least expected to see. In front of her stood Tenten and Sakura could tell just by looking at her that she was nervous. Tenten was the perfect example of a carefree nature and the way she would clasp and then unclasp her hands in front of her gave her away.

They stood there looking at each other, neither knowing what to say. "I take it this isn't a social visit?" Sakura offered and immediately regretted saying it for Tenten's expression turned dark then shook her head. "Come on in."

She stepped aside giving room to the brunette to walk in and then slipped out of her shoes. Sakura closed the door quietly before turning to look at the brunette's back. She took a deep breath and walked to where she had been seated before Tenten's arrival. "Would you like some tea?"

"Uh… no, thank you Sakura." This was definitely not a social visit. She waited for her to speak up and saw her nervousness increase by the second. Tenten took a seat next to Sakura on the couch and was unable to meet her gaze for a moment. The pinkette just stayed quiet, waiting. Tenten cleared her throat before she finally allowed her eyes to meet emerald ones that looked intensely at her. "Sakura… there's something I wanted to talk to you about."

Sakura steeled herself waiting for what she knew would come out of her friend's mouth. "Sasuke wanted to be here, but I told him that it was something I had to do by myself." Tenten paused and swallowed visibly. "Sakura, he- he told me something that I still have a hard time believing myself. He told me he has- feelings for me that are deeper than those between friends." She could see Tenten was having a difficult time telling her of his confession and she admired her for it. Tenten was a good friend. She deserved him. "Sakura, I-"

"Tenten I just need to know one thing. Can you answer me truthfully?" Tenten nodded her head slowly. "Do you love him?"

Tenten was surprised at her question, she hadn't really expected it. She finally answered, "Yes, I do." Sakura let it sink in, she hadn't expected that but knew that it would have only been a matter of time before she too fell for the Uchiha. She had never been one of his fan girls and wondered when it had happened. "I-I'm sorry Sakura. I didn't want to become one of his fan girls, I didn't want to be another one of those girls that longed for even a look from him in their direction. I… I don't know when it happened. I don't know when I fell for him. We became friends and I never saw him that way, especially because of your and Ino's feelings towards him. You're both my friends…" At this point she could see the brunette was on the verge of crying. "But I… fell for him Sakura, I'm so sorry I did, and I felt so ashamed and never wanted it to be known. Never in my wildest dreams did I hope he would have felt something for _me_." Tenten shook her head, "But I can't— I can't hurt you. I can't… this is so difficult… I-"

Sakura reached out to her friend and held her hand gently with hers grabbing the girl's attention. Tenten looked so confused, "Tenten, I don't blame you for falling in love with him. Even with his cool and distant personality, there's just _something_ about him that sticks with you and gets under your skin. He's that kind of guy." Sakura smiled sadly, "And it's because he's that kind of guy that I know it's not easy to reach his heart. I've known him my whole life Tenten… my _whole_ life. I know he's never fallen in love and I hoped that- that it would have been me. I realize that he was never meant to be mine." She felt a tightness in her chest that made her pause for fear of breaking down in front of her friend. "If we were meant to be together he would have fallen in love with me years ago.

There's something about you Tenten. You're special. If you weren't you wouldn't have captured the heart that many have coveted." She stared back at red tinged brown eyes, trying to see what was in them and saw only pain, she guessed that was what was reflected in her own now. "He deserves to be happy, he needs it. You are his happiness Tenten. Please… don't take that away from him."

Tears finally streamed down the brunette's face and her shoulders shook lightly, overwhelmed by the emotion that had been bared to her. "Sa-Sakura, I can't-"

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me." If only she knew how much this was killing her. "I'm just glad that I didn't lose to Ino." She said in attempt to lighten the mood but when she smiled it didn't reach her eyes. Tenten smiled at the effort.

They sat there in silence absorbing the heaviness of the situation before Tenten stood up silently indicating Sakura that she had lingered too long. "I-I have to go." At the door Tenten turned to Sakura, "Thank you Sakura, thank you for everything."

Sakura hugged her as she whispered, "There's no need to thank me. Just… make Sasuke happy and be happy… for all of us." They broke away and Sakura was finally left alone.

She managed to make it up the step from the genkan but just stood there staring at the door Tenten had walked out of. At first she felt numb. Tenten had won Sasuke's affection, what she had longed to have for years. She had decided to come tell her herself, and ask her for her permission, she now realized. If she would have said no, Tenten would not have pursued the Uchiha and that would have been the end of it. The selfish part of Sakura had wanted to cry out and tell her no, how could she do this when they were supposed to be friends? How could she have fallen for Sasuke, the one she had loved since they were young? But Sakura couldn't be that way, she couldn't do that. Everything she had told Tenten she meant from the deepest part of her being.

She knew Sasuke was never going to return her feelings. Since she noticed he had feelings for Tenten, she knew she had lost. If he had been out of her reach before he was unattainable now. But… what was she supposed to do? What was she going to do when she'd see them together, happy? What was she going to do with this pain that was starting to tear her very _soul_ apart? Sakura slumped to the floor and didn't even have the energy to stand up. She felt it; she felt the dam break as silent sobs racked her body violently. Then she just let go as a sorrowful cry escaped her body. She continued to sob and tremble until her body couldn't any more and succumbed to the darkness.

When she came to it was dark. Only the filtered moonlight coming in through the windows aided her sight and helped her realize she was on the floor, as if the cold wooden floor hadn't been an indication. She tried to think back, why had she ended up on the floor? Why was it so dark and why was it so quiet? She slowly answered her own questions. Her parents had decided to take a vacation and wouldn't be back until the end of the summer. When she remembered what had led to her falling asleep on the floor, her chest tightened and she felt a suddenly familiar pain.

That's right, her mind seemed to taunt her, Sasuke and Tenten. As if just the mere thought of them was a trigger, her chest tightened painfully again. The pain felt almost unbearable— to lose the one she had loved almost her whole life— but she couldn't think of anyone more deserving of Sasuke. It was bittersweet.

She realized that it would all come to pass. It would take time but she knew she could heal. Her mom had always told her that it was darkest before dawn, and now she understood. Even in all her darkness, there was the hope of the light of day.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:**_ There's the third story so far in the series. What do you think? I have to say I do like this Sakura better. Please remember that the story that gets more reviews is the one that gets updated first, soooo….. please review! Thank you for reading another one of my stories! Oh! Just as a side note, if you hadn't noticed the titles of the stories have something to do with the male characters: 'Crimson' to Renji, 'Turquoise' to Tōshiro, and 'Hierro' to Grimmjow. Hierro is a word in Spanish, but I think the manga/anime does a pretty good job of explaining that one for those that don't know the language.

_**-Wyvernhail**_


	2. New Day

_**A/N:**_ I just wanted to thank iiNeko-Chan, Genuinely-Unique, blackirishawk, LadyDream3512, Yuuki-Hime 2097, yuchi1994, and Xionnight for their reviews. You guys are so awesome you don't even know. While I was writing the chapters for three of my stories, this one got more reviews than _Turquoise Dreams_, which was gonna be updated first. So as I did say the one with the most reviews gets updated this one goes first. I really didn't think this story would get as good a response as it did but I'm glad I was proven wrong especially since it's my first Sakura fic. Please let me know how I did in this chapter and if you have any other suggestions, I'll be more than glad to hear them.

_**Rating:**_ M

_**Disclaimer: **_I do not own Naruto or Bleach

_New Day_

As was to be expected, she did not go on the beach trip with the rest of the group. She was happy for Sasuke and Tenten, they had been able to find love and happiness with each other, but the wound was still new. It would have been too soon for her to see them together, and that pain was something she was not willing to experience yet. Knowing that they were together was one thing, but seeing them was something completely different. It would be like pouring salt into an open wound.

Ino had came to visit her the day after Tenten's visit, alarmed that Sakura had not answered her phone calls or texts since the day before. They were in constant communication all day everyday. When the blonde arrived at her door and saw the condition her best friend and rival was in all she could do was hold her in a tight embrace. Sakura still felt a bit numb and was in a state of shock, but when she felt her friend's arms around her, she crumbled for the umpteenth time and cried until her eyes couldn't shed any more tears. Ino merely stood there and hugged her; she didn't talk while she cried and waited patiently for her to let it all out. When all that escaped Sakura were dry sniffles, Ino grabbed her hand and slowly led her to sit on the couch.

When Ino asked her what happened Sakura told her about Tenten's visit and what she had told her. It was painful just remembering about it. When she finished retelling the event Ino just looked sadly at her pink haired friend, _"I'm so sorry Sakura. I… we lost him." _Sakura knew it was hurting Ino too, she had also been in love with Sasuke for almost as long as she had been. They had even stopped talking to each other for several years when they found out they both liked him. They were over that now and she was glad. Who would have thought that it would be her rival that would comfort her in a situation such as this?

They cried together a while longer, mourning the loss they had suffered. Ino had finally left her, but not before promising she'd check up on her several times a day, through a phone call or a visit. Sakura was actually glad, she knew being by herself would only allow her time to dwell on her sadness.

The days leading up to the trip, she had received regular phone calls from her girl friends each leaving an excited message about the upcoming trip and how they couldn't wait to have fun together, about how it would be an unforgettable trip. The morning of the trip, she received even more phone calls and an equal number of messages wondering where she was. The day after the rip she received more. They had all seen Sasuke and Tenten together and now knew the reason for her absence. The girls gave up on calling and decided to visit her instead, knowing full well she'd be there. They had all gone individually; the first had been Hinata, then Orihime, then Tatsuki, and finally Rukia. There was nobody else that knew and shared her pain as well as Hinata and Orihime, and she was glad she wasn't alone. Hinata had told her about her confession to Naruto and his rejection. She wondered if it was some sort of karmic justice for making Hinata suffer because of Naruto, and when she voiced her thoughts Hinata had scolded her for thinking that way. Hinata was just too kind but in a way Sakura still blamed herself. She would be eternally grateful for having Hinata as one of her best friends. Even Uryū, Ichigo, Chad, and Naruto had called her to check on her.

The rest of the summer went by in a blur. She spend her days occupied, never wanting to be alone except to sleep for fear of dwelling on them. But she knew she couldn't run from her thoughts and her feelings forever; her nights were horrible, she cried herself to sleep every night and the first person she thought of when she woke up was him. She pictured those onyx eyes whenever she closed hers.

Tenten and Sasuke had tried getting in touch with her, but she had yet to return a phone call or text. They had even sent messages through their other friends and she had received every single one, but she still couldn't do it. She wasn't ready to face them. No, not yet. She knew it would happen soon there were only a few weeks left before the start of the fall semester and they were all going to Karakura University together. Not just that, but they were going to be _living_ together. They had all decided it would be best if they all stayed at the apartments on campus rather than the dorms, and had gotten together in groups of three. Ichigo, Uryū, and Chad were to be staying together. Naruto, Sasuke, and a friend of theirs from middle school would be in another. Orihime, Tatsuki and Hinata would be together. While Ino, her and… Tenten would be rooming together. It would only make things worse for her.

She missed Tenten terribly; while Ino and Sakura were still fighting it was Tenten who had been by her side. She didn't want their friendship to end like this, and she knew that the brunette was only waiting for her to approach her, whenever _she_ was ready. Tenten knew her that well. She would have to approach her soon; she didn't want to start off the school year on the wrong foot. Their college life was supposed to be great! It was an experience that they were all looking forward to experiencing _together_— it was something she wanted to experience with Tenten.

Sakura decided she just needed the rest of the summer for herself, at least just that. When the school year started that's when she'd fix things, if they were still fixable. She needed to focus on herself for a change. A new life meant a new her and that's what she was going to do. She let out her frustrations by running. She had been athletic all her life, but she had never run so much in her life. She ran every day for miles at a time, too engrossed in her thoughts to keep track of the distance. All she knew was that by the time she finished her lungs and legs were on fire from the exertion.

The week before the start of school, she decided it was time for her new look, the look of the new Sakura. She called her friends, she felt she needed them there for moral support, and asked them to accompany her. Tatsuki was away on a tournament, Orihime had taken a trip with Rangiku, and Rukia had gone to the beach with Ichigo and his family, leaving only Hinata and Ino to accompany her. She felt a little sad but in a way she thought it was better; a smaller group meant they would spend more quality time together.

They started the day going over to Hinata's for breakfast, the girl was _the best cook_ out of the entire group— in fact of anybody she knew— and everybody looked for any excuse just to get a taste of her cooking. After breakfast they headed over to the shopping mall. Sakura and Hinata were not big fans of shopping, but luckily they had Ino there to help them. At first Hinata did not want to buy anything for herself, but after some serious convincing by both Sakura and Ino she gave in.

"College life is a new beginning and that means it's a new you. Out with the old Hinata and in with the new! Nobody will know who we were in high school and nobody will really care! We can be who really are and nobody will judge us— not our families, not even our friends." Ino wanted to make sure that both of her friends realized what a great opportunity this was for them, especially for someone like Hinata.

They bought quite a bit of everything; they stopped at shoe stores and bought at least one pair of different kinds of shoes ranging from flats to boots. Their next stops were clothing stores and they each bought several outfits. Sakura and Ino convinced Hinata to buy some dresses that she would have never been seen dead wearing. They were a little bit above her knees and strangely enough she had fallen in love with them when she saw the dresses. Sakura had bought some things that she would have never even considered wearing before either. Her style had always been preppy and feminine before, but the items she picked now were more edgy but still feminine. Even Ino picked out clothes that were different from her usual style.

They even went into a lingerie store to buy new pieces. When Ino showed some rather provocative, by Hinata standards anyway, lingerie to the lavender eyed girl she turned an impossible shade of crimson. "Oh come on Hina, you never know when you might need it. I mean this could be when you finally meet that special someone."

"Shut up Ino! You're making it sound like you're more experienced in this sort of thing than we are when we all know you're still a virgin too! Besides you're just making Hina uncomfortable, she's already gone out of her comfort zone enough as it is with some of the clothes she's bought." Sakura scolded Ino.

Ino blushed at being called out on her "lack of experience" by Sakura. "W-well I was just trying to suggest something new to her. Cute and sexy underwear will give her a confidence boost. You really should try something other than what you're used to Hinata. You'll feel a lot better in them too!"

Hinata furrowed her brows in thought, "Well, some of these are c-cute. I'll see what I find that I like Ino, but I don't promise anything."

Ino brightened instantly, "Thank you Hinata, I know you're bound to find something you'll like."

When Hinata walked off to look in other areas of the store, Sakura approached Ino, "Don't push her Ino. There are some things that are still too much for her and this can be overwhelming her. She's still our gentle Hinata."

Ino scoffed at her comment and blew her long bangs away from her eyes, "Please, Sakura you make it sound as if she's fragile. You're not giving her enough credit. She needs this too, a new look to go with a new her. She can leave the shy and quiet Hinata that her family hated behind, and give way to the stronger more confident version of her that we all know and love. Let her do this Sakura."

Sakura stayed quiet looking intently at Hinata looking through several pieces and wrinkling her nose slightly when they were too transparent or when she came across the occasional g-string. "Maybe you're right Ino."

An hour and a half later they made their way to the parking lot to drop of what they had bought. The last stop of the day was the beauty salon; a completely new look from head to toe. They didn't even have to wait long since Ino was a regular customer and didn't need an appointment.

A beautiful woman with short blonde hair with three braided locks and green eyes greeted them. She was rather tall compared to the three teens. "Ino Yamanaka, it's nice to see you." Her voice was strangely soothing, "I see you brought friends."

Ino bowed slightly, "Hello Tia. I'm here for my regular visit and my friends wanted a new look. We wanted new hairstyles as well as make up."

The woman named Tia smiled curtly, "Good choice, Ino." She turned to look at the other two girls. "My name is Tia Harribel and I am the owner of the salon. I have just the girls for the task, and I know you'll love the way you look when they are through with you." Tier looked over her shoulder and called out, "Girls? We have new clients." From behind her three women walked up. "They are my most talented stylists, Cyan Sung-Sun, Emilou Apacci, and Franceska Mila Rose." She pointed to each one respectively and then turned to the teens standing in front of her, "You won't be disappointed. Girls you know what to do."

The stylists walked to one girl each; Cyan led Hinata to the back of the salon, followed by Emilou with Sakura, and finally Franceska with Ino. They all disappeared in different directions and Sakura became a little nervous. This was her first time doing something so drastic to her look.

Sakura was led to a chair where her hair would be washed. Emilou chuckled softly and smiled at the pink haired girl, "Relax, it'll be fine. Is it your first time?"

Sakura blushed, "Is it that obvious?"

The stylist giggled this time before answering, "Just a little. There's nothing to worry about. I have done this many times. You'll love what I do with your hair."

Sakura smiled back at the woman that looked to be about the same age as her and noticed her eyes for the first time. They were a different color, one was amber and one was ice blue. Sakura was intrigued by the beautiful shades of blue and brown and was not aware she had been staring too long.

Emilou cleared her throat, "It's called heterochromia, when the pupils are two different colors. A lot of people don't like them and think it's strange."

"I don't think it's strange, actually I think they're beautiful. I had never seen anyone with heterochromia before." Sakura continued to look into her amber and ice blue eyes intently.

"You're the only person other than Harribel who has told me that." Emilou smiled warmly.

"All three of you seem to respect her a lot. A much deeper respect one would have for their boss."

Emilou gently led Sakura to tilt her head back before she began rinsing her hair. She then shampooed it and massaged her scalp. She looked thoughtful and Sakura wondered if she had said something she shouldn't have. "We do respect her greatly. Harribel is more than a boss, she's like our mother." Sakura could see the dark haired girl had a far away look in her eyes. "We were all orphans and lived in the same orphanage. Harribel is ten years older and was adopted first. Her new parents loved her so much and wanted to make her happy every way they could. She had always looked out for us when she was at the orphanage. Everybody was being adopted, everyone except us, and nobody wanted to take us in. So Harribel convinced her parents to adopt us. She told them that's what she wanted for her 18th birthday— three little sisters— Cyan and I were eight and Franceska was ten. She told her parents that she'd work as soon as she turned 18 and she'd help them support us. Since her parents loved her and would have done anything she asked, they accepted and brought us home the day of her birthday. We couldn't have been more blessed with such great parents. They loved us as much as they loved her and we were all a happy family." Sakura started to feel a knot in her throat, for some reason she knew the story wasn't going to have a happy ending.

"Three years ago there was an accident. Our parents were in a hurry to get home, it was Harribel's birthday and our anniversary, the day we finally had a home. It had been raining most of the week and it had been especially heavy that night. There was a curved street a mile before they got home. A truck driver fell asleep behind the wheel and swerved into the opposite lane. The cops said my dad tried to avoid it and swerved but he lost control of the car and hit a tree at high speed— they were killed instantly." Emilou's eyes looked sad and tired, as if she had run out of tears she had cried for her parents long ago. "They left us money, it's as if they knew they wouldn't be with us for long. Harribel had to become our mother and father overnight. She opened this salon and got it going; it has been incredibly successful. We joined her as soon as we could even though she wouldn't let us. She said our education was her top priority."

"So you guys go to school and work here?" Sakura felt a deep respect for the girl.

"Yes, Cyan and I just graduated high school and we'll be starting at the university next week. Franceska will be starting her third year."

"Really, what university are you going to?" Sakura asked.

"We'll be going to Karakura University."

"That's where my friends and I will be going to! You know what would be great? If you guys hung out with my friends and I! You'll love them, there's so many of us! Most of us grew up together but others have joined throughout the years." Sakura was beginning to get excited at the thought of having new friends.

Emilou couldn't help but smile at Sakura, "You know for some odd reason I feel like I can trust you. I've never told anyone else about our life. Actually I don't have any friends other than my sisters." She said sadly, "I think I'd really like that… to get to know you and your friends."

She had finished washing and conditioning Sakura's hair. Sakura sat up and held on to Emilou's hands once she was free. "You won't regret it Emilou, they're gonna love you! Our group is mixed, there are boys and girls but we all get along great. I can't name them all right now because you'd have to meet them for me to introduce them-"

The black haired girl laughed at Sakura's hardly contained excitement. "Sakura I can hardly wait to meet your friends now." Emilou helped Sakura get up and led her to where she'd be cutting her hair, "Alright, Sakura what did you want to do with your hair?" She asked as she let her take the seat and began brushing out her hair.

The pinkette stayed silent for a moment contemplating what it was she really wanted. She had let her pink hair grow midway down her back. She loved her long pink tresses and did not want to part with them, but she was already here and she couldn't back out now. "Okay I want to cut it off… just nothing too short. The style I'll leave up to you since you're the expert and I really don't know what would look good on me." Sakura bit her bottom lip uneasily.

"Are you sure? By the looks of it you've never cut your hair any shorter than it is now and it is a big step."

"I'm sure Emilou I think I'm finally ready for the change." For some reason Emilou thought she was no longer talking only about her hair. She noticed the brief look of sorrow that flashed through her eyes, even if it was only fleeting.

She wanted to take her mind off of whatever it was that had suddenly crushed her cheerful disposition, "So about your friends, is there anything I should know before I meet them? Are there some that you think I'll get along with better than others?"

That seemed to do the work; her eyes brightened up instantly and a smile returned to her lips. Emilou took that as her cue to turn her away from the mirror to get started. "I think you'll get along with everyone great. Out of all the girls I think you'll love Hinata and Orihime the most— Hinata is the one that's with Cyan right now— they're the kindest people you'll ever meet! Rukia is great too she's nice but she's tough too, don't let her small size fool you. Ino is just so much fun to be around, she'll cheer you up when you're at your lowest. And there's Tatsuki and… Tenten," her once cheerful mood seemed to vanish as quickly as it had come and Emilou knew that there was something about this friend that bothered the pinkette. Sakura forced a smile, "You'll love them too. They're a little tomboyish but we wouldn't want them any other way. They've both beat up quite the number of boys and girls for either bullying us or hitting on us. They're very overprotective.

Now the boys; there's Naruto, Ichigo, Uryū-" She spend the rest of the time talking about her friends and telling her how they had met. Emilou was glad though, except for the mention of a Sasuke she hadn't become thoughtful again at all, it seemed as if her friends were her sole reason for being, her whole happiness.

Emilou had finished with Sakura's hair but had yet to allow her to see it. "Okay Sakura I am done with your hair, but it's time for your makeup." She reached over to open some drawers underneath the counter and Sakura could hear her looking for her supplies, when she found them she placed them on top of the counter. "Now you don't need a lot, thank your complexion and beautiful eyes for that. All I want to do is apply a moisturizer with SPF as your base," she applied the moisturizer with a cotton ball. "Then I want you to apply the foundation," which she applied gently with a wedge. "Next is the eyeshadow which for your eye color earthy tones such as beige or tan would really make them pop. For your evening look you can use charcoal or hunter green. Then apply a little eyeliner, mascara, a little bit of blush and you're done!" Emilou stood back a bit and contemplated her finished look on Sakura. "You really do look beautiful."

"Can I see?" She asked tentatively, she wondered if she looked as good as her new friend made it sound. Emilou slowly turned her around fully so she could see her reflection. At first Sakura was speechless, she could barely recognize herself. Emilou had cut her hair up to her shoulders and fixed her previously-non-existent-bangs to frame her face, they rested just below her cheekbones. Her makeup was not over the top, which only proved that a little makeup goes a long way, especially when applied correctly. Sakura had never even touched the stuff before this day. The combination of the eyeshadow and eye liner really made her emerald eyes pop. "W-wow. You really outdid yourself Emilou. I didn't recognize myself for a few moments there." She ran a hand through her hair and loved how soft and silky it felt. Sakura turned to her and gave her a hug, "Thank you so much, Emilou. I love it."

She really did look like an entirely different person. When her and her friends had walked in the salon, she had looked like a young girl still in high school. Now that she had finished with her she looked like the young woman she was— the one that would be going out into the real world, leaving everything that plagued her behind. "No need to thank me Sakura. Now you are ready to take on anything."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:**_ Hope you liked this chapter too and please don't get impatient Grimmjow will be introduced soon, next chapter hopefully, I think we're finally ready for him. It will be so much fun! I don't know where Harribel and her fracción came out of, I was just writing this chapter and I thought of them. I didn't plan to add them too but the chapter just wrote itself. I wanted to explain Sakura's short hair somehow, you know how when she cut it in the anime it was real symbolical when the Sound Village ninja attacked them, Ino-Shika-Cho formation, and Sasuke's curse mark remember that? Well I like Sakura's shorter hair since it helps her look more grown up versus the long hair that makes her look like a little girl. So I wanted it to mean something too. Please review or send me a PM to let me know how I did. At least this chapter was longer than the last… Like I said the story that gets the most reviews will get updated first. I should be updating the rest of my stories throughout the week so if you're interested be on the lookout. Thank you for reading this chapter!

_**-Wyvernhail**_


	3. Shiver

_**A/N:**_ Thank you so much for the support I've been receiving! My readers are awesome… I have responded to almost all of my reviews, but I still want to thank you publicly. Blackirishawk, yuchi1994, XionNight, Porcelain Huntress, iiNeko-Chan, and Yuuki-Hime2097 thank you for your wonderful reviews! Please read the author's note at the end of the chapter for important future update information. Anyway on with the chapter!

_**Rating: **_**M** definitely applies to this chapter so you're warned!

_**Disclaimer:**_ Nope. Do not own Naruto or Bleach.

*** As a side note… I'm starting to really like Sakura who knew she could be so strong?

_**Shiver**_

The week had been the longest in her short life; she was positive that it was due to the inevitable confrontation she would be having with Tenten, but what she still wasn't sure of was if she wanted to do it. _'Maybe I should just stay at home and commute. No… that would be a 35 minute drive one way everyday. What if just…? No! Come on Sakura, you're a grown woman for crying out loud! Grow a pair!'_ She would have to do it sooner or later. She missed Tenten.

She had packed her red damask suitcases with only what she thought was necessary. She had packed the new clothes she had bought on the shopping trip she had with Hinata and Ino, along with the undergarments Ino had ended up buying for them since neither had felt brave enough to do so. They weren't scandalous, she had half expected Ino to buy her something she would blush just thinking of wearing, they were cute and the lace ones were enticing without being raunchy. She heard her phone buzzing on her bed and picked it up. She unlocked it and when she saw who it was from she wasn't the least bit surprised. The blonde would text her several times a day. She opened it and felt a vein on her forehead throb.

_Are you on your way? Hurry up forehead you're taking too long!_

They had stopped calling each other names when they patched things up between them, but every once in a while Ino would do so just to annoy her and Sakura hated it.

_I'm on my way Ino-pig! Stop whining already._

She touched the send button and smiled. She could see Ino throwing a tantrum at the insult while reading the text. Satisfied with herself she grabbed her suitcases and headed out the door. Just as she reached the living room she saw her driver come inside. He rushed to her side when he saw her holding the luggage.

"Miss Haruno what are you doing? You could have called for me. You shouldn't be carrying your luggage yourself. What would your father say if he saw me slacking off by letting you carry it?" The tall dark haired man, older than Sakura by no more than five years, lightly reprimanded her.

Sakura placed them on the ground and placed her hands on her hips. Emerald eyes met sapphire and she frowned. "Kyo what have I told you about addressing me? Besides I'm perfectly capable of doing things for myself and my father would tell you the same thing. He didn't raise a spoiled brat."

The older man blushed slightly, "I'm sorry Sakura," it sounded so foreign he had been taught to show respect to those above him. Strangely enough although the Haruno's were a wealthy family, they had never made him feel as if he was beneath them. He did work for them, he was their driver, but they still treated him like a friend of the family. "You're right he would say that. Regardless, what am I getting paid to do then?"

She had to give him credit he was persistent. He'd always argue his way to prove his point and she would have no option but to accept defeat. Today she didn't feel like arguing for hours, she just smiled and acceded, "Okay, you win. I don't want to argue with you today. I don't know when I'm gonna see you again." Her smile turned sad, "I'm gonna miss you Kyo…"

She looked at the young man that had quickly become a friend and had crossed the lines between employer and employee. Her parents loved him, he had proved his loyalty to them, and she cared for him too. He was dressed in the issued black suit and was wearing white gloves, he didn't wear the hat and Sakura was glad. Kyo had chin length, pitch black, straight hair, sapphire eyes that would make any girl envious, and fair skin. He was a very handsome young man. Ino would tell her how lucky she was to have a driver like him hers was an "unattractive old man". She only wished she had fallen in love with someone like him instead. She wished she had fallen in love with _him_.

Sakura was not blind. While there were things she remained oblivious to, there were other things that she picked up on fairly easy, like the fact that Kyo had feelings for her. He had never voiced them and never would because of their position, but she could see it plain as day and wondered if anybody else had. He showed it in the things he did for her, sure it was his job, but he seemed almost happy to do them. She could tell by the way he looked at her and smiled at her; she could see the longing in his eyes and how at times his smile turned sad. She didn't like hurting him he was her Kyo after all.

To her surprise Kyo reached out to her and ruffled her shorter pink strands lightly, "I'm gonna miss you too, Sakura. You have no idea." He gave her his sad smile and Sakura felt her chest tighten. She placed her hand on top of his and gave him an encouraging smile. They stayed like that for a few moments before he removed their hands from the side of her head, "Come, you have somewhere you need to be." He picked up her luggage before she could say anything else.

* * *

><p>The drive to the university had been filled with a comfortable silence both were too deep in their own thoughts to initiate conversation. The car pulled slowly to a stop without Sakura realizing it until Kyo was holding her door wide open. He extended his gloved hand to help her out and she held on to it, enjoying the familiar warmth. He opened the trunk and got the red luggage out before walking by her side to the entrance of the building.<p>

At the entrance they were greeted by an older man with graying hair. "Good morning, miss welcome to Karakura University's B-Complex. This is the second of the three apartment complex buildings that were created for our students. May I have your name please?"

"Sakura Haruno," she stated. She liked that visitors were monitored, as was to be expected from the university's standards.

The older man typed her name into the system with agile fingers. "Ah, yes Miss Haruno. You're room is 810," he said handing her a key to the apartment. "My name is Daisuke Saitou and if you ever need anything feel free to ask. The complex has several features accessible to the tenants like a private gym that is open 24 hours and a private spa. If you need any more information it is available to you."

A private gym, that got her attention and she'd make sure to check it out later. "Thank you Mr. Saitou I'll be sure to check it out." Kyo nodded to the older man and made their way into the elevator before the older man had a chance to give them more information. "You're more quiet than usual, Kyo. Is something wrong?"

"No, Sakura everything is fine. I'm just thinking about some things your father asked me to do for him." He stated and pressed the button with an eight on it.

She wondered if that was really it. They remained silent until they reached the eighth floor. When they were out of the elevator Kyo turned right and looked at the doors until he found room 810. He stepped aside and let Sakura unlock it. She walked in and stepped out of her shoes before slowly taking in her new surroundings.

"It's fabulous isn't it?" Ino came out of the room on the left and closed the door. It really was. It was huge for college housing. Everything was in green and different shades of brown, ranging from its lightest to darkest shades, very earthy tones. There was a large cream colored chaise lounge sectional with throw pillows in greens and browns in front of a brick wall in different shades of brown; a large flat screen TV hung on it and an electric fireplace was below it. The windows spanned the width of the living room and were just as high.

Ino gave her a hug in greeting before pulling away. "Hi Kyo," she greeted the young driver and he nodded. She walked towards the bedrooms not bothering to look if Sakura and Kyo had followed. In passing she saw that the kitchen was just as striking. "The rooms are all identical so I already picked mine." She opened the door to the room she had come out of and let them in. Sakura loved it. "We each have our own bathroom so we won't have any problems over who hogs bathroom time the most. You can have your pick of either the room at the end or the one across from me." The blonde walked out of her room motioning for them to follow.

Sakura thought for a few moments, "I guess I'll take the one at the end." She walked into her new room, Kyo walked in shortly after with her luggage and placed it by the door, it was an exact copy of Ino's room. She quickly made her way to the shoji door across from where she stood and followed the small hallway until it led her to another door. She opened it and found the luxurious bathroom complete with a stand-up shower and large bathtub. She could get used to this.

"Best thing of all is that we each get our privacy," she heard Ino call out. Privacy was something she treasured highly.

She joined Ino and Kyo in the bedroom. "Now that you're settled I must be on my way Sakura," Kyo said. "I have errands to do for your father."

Sakura didn't want him to leave so soon who knew when she'd see him again. "Alright, only because it's my father if not I'd tell you to stay longer." Sakura walked him to the door and opened it to let him out. "Kyo," she said tentatively.

He turned around to look at her and saw the saddened expression, "Take care of your self Sakura." He smiled her favorite saddened smile and offered his hand for her to shake it.

Sakura looked at his outstretched hand then met his sapphire eyes. She took them both by surprise when she hugged him instead. Kyo stood there shocked then slowly wrapped his arms around the much shorter girl. "Take care, Kyo. I'm gonna miss you." She felt him nod his head and pulled away. He walked away from her.

Sakura heard Ino run behind her and stick her head out into the hallway. "Don't be a stranger Kyo and come visit us, you hear?" She called after Kyo.

He didn't look back and waved over his shoulder, "I will Miss Yamanaka."

"That's Ino to you, Kyo!" She retorted.

* * *

><p>It was that time of the year again. The beginning of the new school year meant new obnoxious freshman would be roaming about campus. <em>'Just fucking great...'<em> It was something he had not been looking forward to. He walked into B-Complex and saw the familiar old man Saitou at the desk.

"Good morning Mr. Jaegerjaquez," the old man greeted not expecting a worded answer. After a year of the younger man's flippant behavior he had grown accustomed to it. It was his second year at the university and his greetings had progressed to grunts. The young man did just that before disappearing into the elevator.

As the elevator door closed behind him he pressed the button to his floor. He dreaded going back to his room. One of his roommates, Yilfordt Granz, had graduated last year leaving him and Ulquiorra Cifer with an extra room. Residency would not allow them to leave the room empty though they really didn't mind splitting the rent two ways, so they had been assigned a new roommate and a freshman to top it off. Grimmjow hoped the kid wasn't annoying like the rest. _'Fucking fish.'_ He heard the distinctive ding that announced he had reached his floor and the door opened. He took a right and walked down the familiar hallway. _'I hope the kid isn't there yet.' _He could only hope if not he'd have to leave the apartment again and keep himself busy all day. He could always hit the gym later; each apartment complex had its own private gym _god forbid _the rich snobs would have to wait their turn at one of the machines. On second thought he'd just go later when he'd be sure he wouldn't risk running into one of them. He had been spending a lot of time at the gym; he couldn't stand Ulquiorra lately, much less than he usually could so he stayed away from him not wanting to get into a physical altercation. Grimmjow thought that's what his roommate needed— arrogant asshole thought he was better than everyone else!

About halfway down the hall he could see a tall man dressed in a driver's suit, not much older than him, standing outside of one of the apartments. The door was open and he saw a short pink haired girl suddenly hug the driver surprising both males. No rich woman or girl he knew in the building, no scratch that the entire _campus_, would have had a gesture like that towards a driver. He saw the reluctance in the driver before he returned the hug then pulled away and started walking towards him. He saw the pink haired girl look at the retreating male then a blonde showed up behind her and called out to the driver. Both males walked by each other and exchanged a slight nod in greeting.

As Grimmjow walked by the two females he could see the pink haired one looked at the retreating driver until he heard the ding of the elevator door. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the blonde gawking at him and he rolled his eyes. He saw her nudge the shorter female but she didn't look at the blonde roommate until Grimmjow had walked past them. It didn't surprise him anymore to catch females or males ogling him he was used to it. He knew he was good looking; his 6'1" muscular frame, light blue hair, and light blue eyes made him stand out. He knew the girls must be freshmen, they looked young, and he hadn't seen them before. He could feel the blonde's gaze on the back of his head. If it had been "Pink" it would have been another thing but she had remained oblivious to him. Pink intrigued him, in that brief gesture she had had towards the raven haired male she had piqued his interest and he wondered what the story was behind that. He also noticed briefly in passing that she was kind of cute.

What was he thinking? Women didn't pique his interest. He had yet to meet one that did, though suddenly eyes of earth and ice flashed in his memory and he mentally shook his head to keep that memory at bay. He loved women, they were beautiful creatures, but he only kept them around long enough to keep him from feeling lonely. Once they started to get attached and started wanting for him to become the "b" word he fled. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez was not meant to be tied down— he was a free spirit and he would stay that way.

* * *

><p>Sakura looked after Kyo until he disappeared into the elevator, vaguely aware of a tall figure with light blue hair that walked past them. She felt Ino nudge her arm desperately but she hardly acknowledged it, she already missed Kyo. She finally looked at her, "<em>What<em>, Ino?" Her voice lightly tinged with the annoyance she felt.

She saw Ino staring after the guy with the light blue hair; she had never seen such an interesting color before. "Did you _see_ him?" Sakura saw her eyes twinkling with excitement. Ino didn't even wait for her to answer. "He is so hot! I have to find out who he is." In the distance they heard keys jingling and saw him unlock and enter the last door on the right. "He lives on this floor, too!"

Sakura rolled her eyes and went inside the room; she heard Ino close the door. "Leave it to you to find a guy to stalk on the first day we're here." She took her phone out of her pocket and looked at the time. "It's not even noon yet and you've already found a victim!" She teased.

"Oh shut it! You know he's good looking," countered the blonde.

"Actually, I didn't pay attention." She really hadn't she had been too worried about Kyo.

"That's right you were too busy checking out Kyo to notice the blue-eyed hottie."

Sakura blushed, Ino would always find a way to twist things around. "I wasn't checking him out! I just didn't want him to leave so soon." Her blush disappeared. "I'm gonna miss him a lot that's all…"

Understanding dawned on the blonde and she hugged her long time friend from behind. "I know Sakura, he's more than a driver to you and he's someone very important." Sakura nodded slowly, Kyo was a friend. "Enough with the downer attitude let's go unpack your things." Ino wanted to distract her. They walked to the room at the end of the hall. Sakura was glad she had only brought her two suitcases and that would make things go faster. She hated unpacking.

* * *

><p>Before they realized it was after noon; the hours had passed with them unpacking and chatting away about everything and anything, their expectations for the semester and what not. They were interrupted when they heard the opening of the door. Ino who had been lying on her stomach on Sakura's bed was jolted to her feet and ran to the living room. Sakura stayed behind. If they had come in with their own key it could only be one person. She gulped audibly and braced herself before approaching her bedroom door. She heard a familiar female voice, one she hadn't heard since the beginning of the summer, followed by a deeper male voice one she knew all too well. Her heart skipped a beat and she felt her stomach somersault.<p>

She could hear them talking and decided she had to come out and see them— it was time. She stepped out of her room and slowly walked down the hallway. That's when she saw them and they saw her. The brunette had been asking Ino something but stopped mid sentence at sight of her. Ino who had been sitting on the chaise turned around and Sakura could feel three pairs of eyes on her. She just stood there shell-shocked looking back at brown eyes. She hadn't seen them in so long that she didn't know what to do. Tenten just looked back at her as if waiting for her do either welcome her or kick her out.

Sakura walked closer towards her estranged friend and made the effort to speak, but when she tried her voice wouldn't leave her. She cleared her throat and felt a familiar sting in the back of her eyes. "I-I'm sorry Tenten." That's all she knew to say. She had avoided them all summer long deliberately to allow time to heal before this moment. She still didn't feel ready and she sure hadn't healed.

The brunette shook her head and closed the distance between them in seconds before crushing her in an embrace. Sakura felt Tenten's body tremble against hers as she continued to shake her head. Tenten ran her fingers through pink tresses, "No, don't you _ever_ apologize to me. I'm the one that's sorry… for everything." Sakura could hear the effect the tears Tenten was now crying were having on her voice and she felt her own finally break free. She closed her eyes and hugged her friend back. "I've missed you so much Sakura— so, so much."

"I've missed you too, Tenten," she finally said out loud. They both cried freely not paying attention to the other two in the room. "I missed my friend." She felt Tenten nod her head.

They held each other and cried for a few minutes before finally tearing away. She saw Ino quickly wipe away the tears that she too had been crying. She saw Sasuke, for the first time in two and a half months, approaching her. He did something very uncharacteristic of him; he actually hugged her. Sakura widened her eyes in surprise. Sasuke had _never_ hugged her before. "I missed you Sakura. You gave us quite a scare." When he pulled away she turned to look at Tenten; she saw a big smile on her face, as if everything was finally right in the world. She glanced at Ino and saw that her mouth was open in astonishment. There was no doubt in her mind that this change in Sasuke was due to Tenten— there truly was no one better for him.

Sakura smiled sadly at them both, "I'm sorry, I just- I just needed some time." She had to be honest with them. "I just want to tell you both that I'm happy for you. I'm glad that you found each other." She turned to look at Sasuke, "I know that… you were never meant to be mine. You were hers all along." Sasuke understood and nodded. Sakura felt herself suddenly being held by the couple in another rare show of affection by the stoic Uchiha; she had missed them both greatly.

Ino cleared her throat before approaching the three of them, "Okay now that everything's fine between us again how about we show Tenten her new room?" The blonde had been temporarily forgotten. Ino grabbed the other girls' hands and led them to the room on the right. She let them go and opened the door, "You're gonna love it Tenten!"

Tenten walked toward the bed and let her body fall heavily on it. "The bed's comfortable at least."

Sakura giggled, Sasuke smirked, and Ino frowned. "That's all you have to say?" Said the blonde astounded. "At least check out the rest of the room." She suggested pointing to the shoji door that led to the bathroom.

Tenten shook her head, "Nah, I can tell it's more than enough. I'll see it when I have to use it."

Ino looked disappointed and was about to say something else when Sasuke spoke up. "You heard her. It's more than enough." He deadpanned.

Sakura felt herself smile again. She was happy they were all together again, maybe even closer than they had ever been. She had never seen Sasuke so happy before… and it was all because of Tenten. Maybe everything was alright in the world.

* * *

><p>Sasuke had eventually left some time after nine. They had all spend their first day together; ate lunch, watched movies, caught up on things, ate dinner, and watched some more movies until Sasuke took off. Something about leaving before Naruto began pounding on every door until he found him— all he knew was that they had all ended up on the same floor by some sheer stroke of luck— or maybe it had been done deliberately by the Residency of the university, who knew. Sakura silently agreed, she really didn't want to see the boisterous blonde; too many overwhelming emotions for one day and she didn't want to add murderous intent to the list, no not today.<p>

Ino and Tenten were lounging around in the living room when she came out of her room in her athletic clothes, a red tank top with the outline of a circle on the middle of her back in white, black form fitting pants, and a small duffel bag on her shoulder. It was past eleven at night and the two looked quizzically at her. "Where are you going so late, Sakura" Ino was the one to speak up.

"Mr. Saitou mentioned there was a 24-hour exclusive gym in the building and I want to check it out. Do you want to join me?" She already knew the answer but asked anyway.

Ino made a face, "No, thank you."

Tenten also shook her head. "Sorry Sakura, I have to be going to bed already. My father wanted to see me tomorrow in the morning."

The brunette would have been the only one out of the two to actually join her. "It's your loss," she said as she walked towards the door. "I'm taking my key so lock up. I'll be back in an hour or two." She said before she closed the door.

She walked down the hallway and noticed how quiet it was. She was glad they didn't have loud neighbors, maybe except for Naruto, it would make things easier down the road. He had to make his presence known everywhere he went. She reached the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. She had yet to see any of her neighbors— other than the blue haired male she hadn't even paid attention but Ino swore was "a hottie" she hadn't seen anybody else. When she reached the lobby she saw that Mr. Saitou had been replaced by a woman around his age.

When the woman saw her she smiled warmly and greeted her, "Good evening miss, did you need anything?" Her eyes became wrinkled.

Sakura smiled back at the older woman, "Good evening." When she looked at the nametag she saw it read Mitsuko. "Uhmm- actually yes, Mr. Saitou mentioned earlier today there's a private gym. Where would that be located?"

Mitsuko pointed at the hall behind her and to Sakura's left. "Just go all the way to the end of the hallway. It's on your right hand side."

Sakura nodded, "Thank you for your help."

She knew she'd be spending a lot of time here; the gym had state-of-the-art equipment, some that had not even been out on the market yet. It had been easy enough to find once she was pointed in the right direction— if the sign that read "gymnasium" and extended from the wall on top of the door had been no other indication. She walked in the small entrance lobby where there was another door, giving those who happened to be working out privacy from anybody that happened to be walking the halls. She was glad to see there was nobody else in there and she had the place to herself.

She had left her cell phone in her room she didn't want any interruptions. This was her personal time. She took out her MP3 player from her duffel bag, put on her headphones, and walked over to a treadmill towards the back of the room. She placed her bag on the floor and played her favorite playlist on random, turning up the volume loud enough for her to drown out her thoughts. She began at a slow pace before speeding it up; today she just wanted to run.

* * *

><p>The new roommate had not shown up today and Grimmjow was relieved. He wasn't the least bit anxious to meet him. He hoped the kid backed out at the last minute and wouldn't be moving in with them. <em>'One less fucker to avoid.'<em> He had been highly unproductive the whole day; he had watched some anime a friend had recommended that was supposed to be the shit and had sadly finished watching it in one sitting. It had been really good but to his disappointment it had been too short, and he wouldn't have something to watch the rest of the week. He'd have to find something if only to bug Ulquiorra— he hated being around when Grimmjow watched his anime. He'd turn up the volume just to annoy the green eyed roommate until he left the apartment and didn't come back until he thought Grimmjow would be done with his episodes.

Which had led him here… he had grown tired of being unproductive. He had put on his headphones to listen to music as soon as he had left his room, not daring risk someone stopping him to talk, he couldn't hear anything around him. He entered the familiar gym and went straight to work— he had set up a routine already. He didn't let his thoughts wander. He focused on his reps and the music playing in his ears.

* * *

><p>Sakura was dripping in sweat. She had lost track of time once she got started and hadn't realized that an hour had already passed. She slowed down her pace before getting off the machine and picking up her things. She made her way to where she guessed the bathrooms would be and saw a rack of neatly rolled up hand towels. She grabbed one in passing and wiped the sweat from her face not really paying attention to where she was going. She saw a door to her left and walked in.<p>

She saw the curtained shower stalls on her right and a long wooden bench in front of her. Next to the shower stalls was a rack with folded towels and she grabbed one, grateful the gym provided the basics, she had completely forgotten to bring her own. She was relieved she would get to take a shower before calling it a night. She placed her things on the bench and began to undress. She pulled the elastic band from her head, grabbed her shampoo, shower gel, borrowed towel, and walked into the stall closest to her.

* * *

><p>When Grimmjow finally felt like he had worked out his frustration away he stopped and headed over to take a shower. He knew the layout of the gym in his sleep, he had frequented the place that much in the past year. He walked in, taking off his headphones and turning off his MP3 player, only to halt at the door. He hadn't known somebody else had been in the gym with him, he had been so absorbed in his workout he hadn't noticed anyone else. When he walked closer he noticed small items of clothing, something red and black and when he moved even closer he saw it— a red bra and matching bikini. He heard the water turn off and then a female humming happily to a familiar tune immediately after. Grimmjow felt a smirk form on his lips and leaned against the wall opposite the stalls.<p>

He heard the sound of the curtain being drawn and he saw toned and attractive legs step out. As his eyes traveled upwards he recognized someone he had not been expecting to see. His eyes admiringly took in the toned yet still curvy figure wrapped snugly in the short white towel; it barely managed to cover her bottom leaving nothing to the imagination. He recognized the pink hair from earlier that day. He wouldn't have pictured her having such a womanly body.

When she finally looked and saw him leaning against the wall with his arms across his chest she gasped and Grimmjow saw her cheeks color making his smirk more prominent. Her hands went to try and cover her intimate areas as if it would help shield her from his burning gaze. "W-what are you doing here?" She finally spoke up allowing him to hear her voice for the first time.

Grimmjow burst out laughing at the question startling the green eyed woman standing in front of him. "What am I doing here? I should be asking _you_ that question." She looked confused and he laughed even harder. He pointed to something in back of her and she slowly followed. She quickly looked back at him and he saw the red that colored her cheeks gradually extend down past where the towel covered her chest. He found it very attractive. "This is the men's bathroom." He said stating the obvious after she saw the urinals she failed to notice before.

The poor girl looked like she wanted the ground to open up and swallow her. He tried not to laugh at her anymore she looked mortified enough already without him adding to it. He walked closer and he saw her tense up, looking as if she didn't know if she should run away or not, and he looked closely at her. He saw the shoulder length pink hair was naturally hers, a unique color much like his own blue, he looked into her eyes and saw they were an emerald green and he was drawn to them. He noticed her flawless rosy complexion and fought the urge to reach out and touch her, until his eyes finally rested on her rosy pink lips. He had never been so physically attracted to anyone like this before and it scared him.

He walked away from her with difficulty and placed his things on the bench next to hers his back towards her. He heard her let out a deep breath and he smirked, at least he hadn't been the only one affected by the close proximity. He liked teasing her just to see how she would react. He took off his white shirt in one swift move before looking over his shoulder. He saw the blush had returned with a force and he enjoyed it greatly. "Don't look so fucking worried, this incident will stay between us." Before she could say anything he walked inside the shower stall leaving her to get dressed— emerald eyes not leaving his thoughts.

* * *

><p>Sakura wanted to die! How could she have made the mistake of walking into the men's bathroom? She got caught to make things worse and not by just anybody, the one who caught her had been the guy Ino had been gushing over earlier! She had to admit he was an extremely good looking guy, not that she would audibly agree with Ino, but he was. She hadn't been able to take her eyes off him the whole time; she had noticed his naturally light blue hair and light blue eyes with green lines on his bottom lash line. He was really tall and she could see the perfect outline of his muscles through his white workout shirt. When he actually took it off in front of her, as if it was the most natural of things in the world, she thought she was going to pass out from all the blood that had rushed to her head. Sakura had never seen a guy without his shirt on and he had been no disappointment. She actually stared openly at his chiseled back, could see the rippling of his muscles as he moved and had not been able to look away. She was behaving like Ino for crying out loud! That voice— it did things to her she couldn't explain. What affected her most was that he had looked at her in a way no other man had looked at her before and she couldn't describe the feeling she saw in his eyes, it had seemed almost feral, but whatever it was she had liked it and wanted it. It had sent a shiver down her spine.<p>

By the time he got out of the shower she was already gone; the scent of her shampoo or body wash lingered— it smelled of cherry blossoms and though he had never really liked the floral scent his mind had already made the connection to her and strangely enough he now liked it. He had to admit that he was disappointed to see that she didn't stick around. He had enjoyed teasing her, seeing her cheeks flush at his advances then when it traveled down the rest of her body coloring places he couldn't see but would have liked to.

What he had liked the most was the fact that she had refused his advances, she had either not cared or noticed, but the truth was that he had liked it. If it had been any of the women that he was used to, or her blonde roommate for instance, he was positive they would have thrown themselves at him… but not her. She was different and that intrigued him. He began to think he wouldn't mind bumping into her again and wondered when that would be. They lived on the same floor after all. He looked down at the bench and saw something there that wasn't his. When he picked it up he saw that it was hers— it was her MP3 player. Grimmjow smirked, looked like he'd be seeing her a lot sooner than he had originally thought. Now that he thought about it he didn't even know Pink's name.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:**_ We finally got Grimm! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I had fun writing it. Sorry if it was a bit long I just wanted to introduce Grimmjow already. Okay so on to the news. Guess what? I got a new job! Yay me! Next week will be my last week at my current job of four years. What that means is that after this coming weekend I will work seven days straight at my current job, then will immediately start at my new one the following day. So… after that I don't know when my next day off will be. Starting Monday, I will not be able to update for the next two to three weeks due to work overload. I will try to get out another chapter of _This World Can't Tear Us Apart_ or one of the other stories, maybe. I've been good about my updates lately so you won't be too mad will you? But there's a chance that depending on the reviews/messages that I get and if my readers really want an update during that time I will make the extra effort to get an update out as soon as possible. See there's still hope… Well hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope to hear some feedback.

_**-Wyvernhail**_


	4. Defiance

_**A/N:**_ Sorry for the late update, I was supposed to post this first thing in the morning but I haven't been able to log in to my account since last night. Did that happen to anybody else or was it just me? So anyway here's the chapter. I want to thank you all for your continued support of this story. I am happy to say that this will not be my last Sakura story. I will take requests if you have them as I am still unsure of who I will be pairing her next with. Just… not Sasuke I am not a SasuSaku fan. Sorry!

_**Rating:**_ M

_**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Bleach or Naruto.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Defiance<strong>_

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

Complete and utter sleep had eluded him for months. He did not know why, but he had been unable to have a whole night's fitful sleep. Now as he lay there something— or rather someone else plagued his thoughts. Since he had seen her earlier that night he had been unable to get emerald eyes out of his head and it bothered him to no end. He growled in frustration and tossed to his left side. On his nightstand he saw what she had left behind, her MP3 player and grabbed it. He put on the headphones and turned it on, he played the song she had been listening to and was pleasantly surprised.

Familiar riffs and an even more familiar voice blared in his ears. He would have never thought Pink would listen to music such as this. She had the song on repeat— _Lotus_ by Dir En Grey. The tune she had been humming while she was showering had been this one; no wonder it had seemed familiar. He looked through her music library and saw that she had almost all of his favorite bands along with some he had not even heard of. Pink was just full of surprises…

He played her library on shuffle and got comfortable on his bed. After several songs he began to feel drowsy as sleep finally threatened to take over. He played _Lotus_ once again and as he gave in to the darkness the deep lyrics stayed with him in his sleep, _"Kioku kara mada namida wo kesenai…"_

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

Her night had not been pleasant, bright cerulean eyes had plagued her dreams. She woke up tangled in her sheets and flushed, she vaguely remembered being under his scrutiny and it had felt like she was going to spontaneously combust. She needed a cold, _cold_ shower. She looked at the time and saw that it was still early, no doubt Ino was probably still in bed. Sakura made her way to her bathroom and brushed her teeth, she opted for a soak instead of the shower.

Thirty minutes later she closed her bedroom door behind her just as Tenten closed hers. Her morning greeting to the brunette was cut off as they heard the sound of pans hitting the floor and they both rushed to the kitchen. Greeting them was a very annoyed blonde trying to pick up the mess she had made.

They both laughed at her and Ino only became more annoyed. "What are you doing, Ino?" The brunette asked for them both.

Ino blew her bangs away from her face, "I was trying to get things ready so you guys could make us breakfast." She looked around at the things scattered throughout the floor, "Obviously that didn't work out so well."

"Oh, so _we_ are supposed to make _you_ breakfast," Sakura pointed at herself and Tenten incredulously.

"Do you really want _me_ to cook?" Ino asked raising her eyebrow.

"No!" Tenten said all too quickly, "I mean Sakura and I don't mind doing it of course." She turned to look at the one in question with a look that begged her not to contradict her.

Memories of the outcome of Ino's cooking flashed before her and she stiffened visibly. "Tenten's right we don't mind at all," she said as she laughed nervously. _Anything_ to get out of her experimental cooking.

They both helped pick up the various dishes on the floor. "What do you guys want for breakfast today?" Not really waiting for them to answer she offered, "I want eggs and sausage."

Sakura thought about what she wanted. "I want pancakes."

They turned to look at Ino since it would be a majority vote. She knew better and just said, "They're both fine with me." She quickly went to the refrigerator and got the ingredients out. While the other two made breakfast she set the table then sat down to watch TV.

When breakfast was done and plated the doorbell rang. It was still a bit early, but there were only a few people that could be at their door. "I'll get it!" Ino called out eagerly and all but skipped to the door. Sakura and Tenten sat at the table to wait for her. Sakura turned to look at the stove and was glad they had made enough food. If it was Sasuke, Naruto would more than likely be coming along as well.

She had started to eat her breakfast, when she heard an all too familiar deep voice coming from the door. "Is Pink here?" She felt her food get stuck in her throat. _'Pink?'_

"Who's _Pink_?" She heard an echo of her thoughts. Ino walked in and a much taller head of blue hair trailed behind her.

She quickly stood from her chair and saw Tenten giving her a confused look. Sakura felt her feet move of their own volition and she was led to the living room. When she was standing behind Ino she turned to look at her in shock and Sakura could almost read what she was thinking plain on her face. She looked up at their visitor and saw the same look on his face that had made her shiver the night before, and when she did he smirked as if satisfied at her reaction. She walked past Ino until she stood directly in front of him. He was so tall… "W-what are you doing here?" Did she just stutter?

His smirk turned into a grin, "You left in such a hurry last night that you forgot something, Pink." That so did not sound right and she felt her cheeks flush. How was it that he managed to make her feel so flustered? Who was this guy?

He put his hand in his pocket and took out something red and black. When he opened his large hand she saw her MP3 player. She slept with it on more often than not, but she had not missed it last night she had been too preoccupied with what had happened between her and the one standing in front of her. "T-thank you, uhmm…"

"Grimmjow," he offered. "Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez."

She reached out to get it and her hand brushed against his. He felt so warm… _'Get a hold of yourself, Sakura! He can't be getting these types of reactions out of you!' _But he was. "Grimmjow," she tried his name out loud. It was a strange name but it suited him well. "Sakura Haruno," she introduced herself. She would normally shake hands but she dared not touch him. "Thank you for bringing this back."

"No problem." Aquamarine met emerald and she felt dazed. If the circumstances had been different she would have felt smug, he seemed to be in a similar state. They were brought out of their trance when Ino cleared her throat behind them and he chuckled. He leaned closer to her and said in a low voice, "I really like your taste in music." She felt that familiar shiver travel down her spine. _'That voice!'_ He turned around and started walking out, "Nice meeting you ladies. See you around, Pink." He called out before he closed the door behind him.

She must have stood there looking at the door for a while because it wasn't until Ino called out her name that she finally stopped. When she turned to look at her and Tenten she saw the looks of curiosity and she was the first to speak up. "Okay Sakura, spill it!"

"What, there's nothing to spill." Ino was not going to leave her alone and they both knew it.

"Come on, as if 'you left in such a hurry last night' is _not_ anything to spill." Ino even tried to sound like him but failed miserably. "As if you don't know that he was the one we had seen earlier yesterday out in the hallway, and I said was totally hot but you completely didn't pay attention to. It _has_ to be something juicy! Please share with us?" Oh, it was juicy alright.

Ino grabbed her hand and dragged her to the table where Tenten was still sitting. Sakura looked at the brunette but she didn't say anything. Tenten merely gave her a look to say that if she wanted to talk they would listen. She loved Tenten she was never nosy, something she could not say for her blond friend. Sighing she gave in and Ino jumped up and down, "Okay, I'll tell you but you can't laugh."

"We won't, we won't just tell us already!" Ino sat down at her chair just as Sakura did the same and she began to eat her breakfast.

Sakura only took a sip from her orange juice, "So you know how last night I went to go work out after Sasuke left?" The other two nodded and she continued. "Well, when I got there the gym was empty and I thought 'great I have it all to myself'. I was there alone the whole time and when I finished working out I decided to take a shower before I came back to the apartment." Sakura did not want to continue with the story, she felt herself getting red at just the thought of what happened after that.

"Then what happened?" Ino asked fully absorbed in the story.

"Well, I-I finished taking a shower and when I came out somebody else was in the locker room with me." She saw the others' eyes widen in suspense. "Grimmjow was standing outside my stall."

Ino almost spit out the juice she had just sipped from and Tenten almost choked on the food she had been eating. "_What_? He saw you _naked_? What was he doing in the women's locker room in the first place? He's a perv isn't he…?"

"No, oh God no! I would have died if he had! Luckily I had taken the towel with me and put it on before I came out." She got even more red as if it could have been possible. "I- I went into the men's by mistake." Tenten tried really hard to hold back her laughter but Ino just burst out laughing at this point. "You said you wouldn't laugh!" She said accusingly.

Tenten reached out for her hand in solidarity but stifled a laugh, "I'm sorry Sakura but— how could you have made that mistake? Luckily there was nobody else in there besides you two or it really wouldn't have been pretty."

Before she knew it she was laughing as well and Tenten laughed with her. "I don't know- I… just walked in without looking. You should have seen the look on his face when he told me I was in the men's he was enjoying the whole thing a little too much."

"I bet he was," Ino replied slyly. "Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. I think it suits him perfectly and it's kind of exotic." She sighed as she leaned on her hand that was propped up on the table. "Looks like you beat me to him, Sakura."

"What are you talking about? I'm not even interested in him that way. It was all just a misunderstanding that's all." If only it were just that.

"Uh huh, as if the way you two were looking at each other wasn't obvious enough." She turned to look at Tenten and she nodded in agreement. "Come on, Sakura you can at least admit it to us don't you think he's hot? Handsome? Good looking?"

Sakura blushed, "Maybe he is good looking, but he seems like the type of guy that knows it. I refuse to be one of the ones that go after him like a lost puppy." She wasn't that type of girl.

"Hey, are you trying to say something?" Ino asked hurt.

She only laughed at her before shaking her head. "No, it's just that he looks at me like as if I'm something to eat and-"

"You make it sound like it's a bad thing," Ino deadpanned.

"Just be careful, Sakura. These college guys are more experienced than we are and what we are used to. Don't forget the kinds of people we're dealing with, we're on a whole different field." She knew all too well, they were no longer surrounded by familiar people and everyone here was connected to powerful people somehow. They weren't in Kansas anymore. "I just don't want to see you get hurt…" finished Tenten.

Sakura definitely did not want to go through that pain again maybe that was why she was being so guarded. She smiled sadly at the brunette, "Thank you for worrying about me but I'm a big girl. I won't fall for any tricks or cheesy pick up lines, and if it seems too good to be true it probably is. I don't believe in any of that." She saw the guilty look on her friend's face; she still hadn't forgiven herself for what had happened but Sakura already had. This time it was she who reached out to gently squeeze her hand. She wasn't lying, she really didn't believe in any of the romantic sappy crap. That wasn't why she was here. She was here to get the best education in the medical field that she could get, that was all.

"Well, what are the plans for today?" Ino asked breaking the sad mood they seemed to be spiraling down towards. Just then the doorbell rang again.

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

'_Sakura Haruno.'_ His intention in going over to her apartment had been merely for his entertainment at first. He had wanted to get a reaction out of her— to see if he could get her to blush for him again and he had been successful. However, he had not counted on the reaction she would cause in him. Her cherry blossom scent had assaulted his senses. Grimmjow had tried his hardest not to pin her up against anything really and see what other reactions he could get from her. The fact that her two roommates had been there stopped him, that and she probably would not have let him anyway.

Pink was a challenge for him… one that he wanted to conquer. Now that he had set his mind to it he would. There had yet to be a woman that had said no to Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. She would definitely not be the first.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:**_ Another chapter is done! I'm sorry that it's a bit short, but what's coming up next deserves a whole chapter of its own. Things are starting to get juicy… Okay so you know the drill, please review and let me know what you thought of this chapter. My updates are still review driven (the one that gets the most reviews gets updated first). Thank you for reading my story! For reference, the song that I chose, Lotus by Dir En Grey is one of my favorites. This Sakura would definitely love this song. _"Kioku kara mada namida wo kesenai"_ roughly translates to "Can't erase these tears from memory" I found it to be rather fitting…

_**-Wyvernhail**_


	5. Prelim

_**A/N:**_ Hey guys! I've been incredibly irresponsible… I looked at when I last updated this story and it was on 2-10-12. That's almost four months ago…What happened to my reminders? I want to thank leurelayne for getting in touch with me after so long. I heart you! I want to thank everybody who reviewed, read the story, and added the story or myself to their favorites or alerts. You guys have shown a lot of support for this story which is why I'm updating this first. I had to go back and reread the last chapter and I have to say I love this story! I do make mistakes in grammar and I apologize for those (still no BETA). If I didn't like this story I probably wouldn't finish it. Anyway on with the story!

WAIT! Just wanted to warn you that I got _really _carried away writing and it ended up being a _long_ chapter (20 pages worth), but it kind of makes up for the long absence? Am I forgiven? I'm working on another story update as soon as I'm done with this one…

_**Disclaimer:**_ Still do not own anything sadly.

_**Rating:**_ M

Currently listening to**: Let Love Bleed Red** by Sleeping with Sirens

* * *

><p><em><strong>Prelim<strong>_

"Don't forget to submit your assignments online by midnight and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask," the dark haired professor said as closing for the day's lecture. "You can also print your chapter notes from the online learning website. Class is dismissed." Dark blue eyes swept through the small group of students before she made to put away her class roster and other belongings. Class sizes were small at the university and allowed for a more personal relationship between the professors and students.

"Professor Katō," Sakura called out to the young female as she approached her desk.

"Ah, Sakura and Ino," she said once she looked up and noticed the two younger females. "I've told you that you can address me by my first name; I'm not much older than you."

"Sorry… Shizune," the pink haired woman corrected. "Ino and I were actually wondering if there was any campus organizations related to the medical field that we can join."

Shizune smiled in satisfaction at the interest her two students were showing. "Actually there is— it's the Honor Society for our department. You will need a recommendation letter from two of your instructors, but seeing as to how you two are our most promising students I see no problem in you joining. Your lab instructor has already informed me of your continued progress in class."

"Isane is just being nice, she is really helpful and just makes everything so easy to understand," Ino offered as her cheeks tinged slight pink at the compliment and Sakura nodded her head.

Shizune laughed at the girls' awkwardness. "There's no need to be modest girls; I agree with her completely. No matter how easy we may make things as an instructor for our students to learn, if the desire is not there in the first place learning will _not_ be possible." Her expression turned a little sad before she spoke again. "You also forget that not everybody here follows their path through choice."

Sadly it was true— in the world of the elite more often than not the young were obligated to follow some preordained path set by their families. Luckily this was not the case for them.

"You two show a passion and dedication for the medical field that we have not seen in a while and that is what we truly need. If you are this passionate now that the year has just started, I can hardly wait to see where you will be when you graduate." The smile had returned to Shizune's face and then she briefly shook her head. "Anyway, you can go speak to Retsu Unohana— she is the department head— and she will give you the application for the Honors Program. I'll be more than glad to write a recommendation letter for each of you."

"Thank you, Shizune," Sakura answered. "We will go see her as soon as possible."

"You're welcome and if there is anything else that I can help you with you know how to reach me."

As the two friends walked out of the classroom and into the busy hallway, Ino gave her a doubtful look. "So we're really going to do this?" Sakura looked at her before nodding enthusiastically. "It will get challenging since it is an Honor Society after all."

"When have you ever backed away from a challenge before, Ino?"

The blonde looked smug, "True…"

"See, so then it's settled then; we're both joining." As they walked out of the building a head of light blue hair caught her attention.

Ino saw her stiffen and turned her head in the direction where Sakura was looking. When she saw what had made her react that way she smiled. "When was the last time you saw him?"

It had been two weeks since the incident and Sakura had tried her best not to see the arrogant male, which was pretty difficult to do when they attended the same university, lived in the same building, on the same floor, and not to mention the fact that they were practically neighbors. She had memorized the times he came and went from the apartment almost perfectly— only so that she would not run into him.

At Sakura's silence Ino laughed incredulously. "You've been _avoiding_ him!" She practically yelled. Sakura made to glare at her for the outburst but saw that the object of their conversation had already noticed them and was heading their way with a smirk on his face.

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

It had been little more than two weeks since the last time he had seen her. At first he blamed it on the fact that she was a freshman and he a sophomore, but as the first week had passed and there were times he saw flashes of pink only to fully focus his attention and find out nobody was there, he knew it was no mere coincidence. They lived two doors away from each other for crying out loud! Pink was definitely avoiding him but it did not deter him in the least. He was bound to run into her sooner or later.

The morning was going just as it usually did— by the time he left his bedroom Ulquiorra and Tōshirō were long gone. His first class started after ten in the morning, waking up any earlier than that was just unnatural. Grimmjow walked down one of the many long sidewalks on campus on his way to his first class. Although the song he was listening to usually put him at ease, the wailing guitar riffs and trademark double-pedal-drums-backed-choruses that his favorite band was known for, it was doing absolutely nothing for him now. His thoughts were chaotic, constantly coming back to an emerald eyed female who had evaded him for the better part of two weeks.

Not far from him a flash of pink and yellow caught his attention and he quickly looked in that direction before it vanished like it had many times before. This time he was rewarded with the sight of the one who had plagued his thoughts moments before. She was accompanied by her blonde roommate and it looked like they had spotted him before he did; Pink was looking all around her as if searching for an escape. Now he was sure that she _had_ been avoiding him. The two females were talking but he still wasn't close enough to distinguish the words. Right when Pink was about to make a run for it, he saw the other female grab her arm and he smiled, Blondie had quick reflexes.

He stood in front of them seconds later and the smell of cherry blossoms assaulted his senses, he inhaled deeply on reflex. He then immediately noticed her flushed countenance and how her breathing had become rapid despite the fact that she was desperately trying to control it, she had yet to meet his gaze. "Funny running into you here," Grimmjow said as a greeting and his voice came out lower than he had intended. It took him all of two seconds to see that the skin on her arms had prickled at the sound of his voice. He smirked, "I was starting to think you were avoiding me and I wouldn't see you again."

At that Pink finally looked up at him defiantly, the flush still present on her face. "Of course I haven't been avoiding you." She looked away nervously, "W-we just have different schedules, that's all."

Grimmjow knew she was lying, she was so easy to read, but he decided to leave it alone for now. She was standing right in front of him and he would make damn sure she wouldn't go disappearing on him again. "Where are you girls headed?" He decided changing the subject would put her at ease somewhat, why was she on her guard?

Her blonde companion decided it was her turn to intervene, "Sakura was actually headed to her next class." He could almost see the gears turning in her mind as she turned to look at her friend. "I'm sorry, but I won't be able to walk with you to class like I wanted to. I have to meet up with Tatsuki before she goes to the dojo."

Grimmjow saw the look of realization plain on Pink's face as her face paled. "Wait, Ino-"

"Luckily, Grimmjow showed up he can walk with you. I'm sure he wouldn't mind," the blonde named Ino was now looking at him expectantly, strangely he preferred to address her as Blondie and it suited her better.

He recognized his cue. "Where's your next class?"

"In the Communications building," Pink answered several seconds later.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Fuck it, my class is in the Fine Arts building next door." He saw her flinch and he wasn't sure if it was from the idea of him walking her, from his word choice or perhaps both.

"It's settled then! Grimmjow can walk with you since it's on the way." The blonde girl smiled and Grimmjow was blinded momentarily. _Blondie's just one big fucking ray of sunshine_. She hugged her pink haired friend, "Don't forget that we're all going to get together for lunch at the Union. You are more than welcome to join us if you don't have any plans." Her deep blue eyes were now looking in his direction.

"Only if Pink doesn't mind me coming along."

Sensing Pink's apprehension Blondie interjected. "Well, I'm off. See you during lunch!" She was gone before either of them could reply.

They stood together in awkward silence until Grimmjow cleared his throat. He _did not_ get nervous around the opposite sex, he was Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez for fuck's sake! When he had her attention he spoke, "Lead the way." He placed his large hand on the small of her back and instantly regretted the action. Upon doing so he heard the sharp intake of breath from the small female as his hand came in contact with bare skin. She recovered before he did, but still not fast enough for both to realize the effect that brief contact had on them.

As she started to walk, Grimmjow finally had an opportunity to look at her. She was wearing her hair down and was free of accessories; her face looked almost completely natural, with only the minimum hints of make-up. She was wearing a long sleeve, black and white thin striped shirt that had a neckline that was a bit too wide and exposed her left shoulder. Now that her back was towards him he saw the reason for the skin on skin contact; the shirt was shorter on the back and was cinched together by a piece of black fabric. Her distressed, straight-leg jeans fit her curves just right and hung low on her hips exposing even more of her lovely back and Grimmjow was incredibly grateful for the view. As his eyes finished their path down her body, he saw black and white Chuck Taylor's on her feet then smirked as he looked at his own feet donning the same thing. The deep burgundy leather messenger bag that slung across her shoulders swayed in rhythm as she walked.

Finally looking over her shoulder once she noticed he had not followed, Pink tried to give him a smirk but failed miserably. "You comin'?"

As she stood there Grimmjow saw numerous male students looking her way and she remained blissfully unaware. He smirked mostly just to show her how a real one was done and was next to her in no time. His answer was a strong arm thrown over her shoulder as he half dragged her to class; he suppressed the urge to laugh when he heard her squeak and turn a deep shade of red as she fought to get away from the embrace but to no avail. Better he lay his claim now before anybody got the idea she was available.

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

Sakura stumbled into class just as the professor walked in behind her. She dazedly sat down and took out her notebook to write notes. She was feeling too many different emotions at the moment and she didn't know how to react. She went through everything that had happened that morning and she realized that she was furious! Ino had left her alone with Grimmjow on purpose and then invited him to lunch! She was going to get her back for this one…

After she somewhat steadied her heartbeat, she thought back on Grimmjow and that despite all his teasing he actually seemed glad to see her again. Sakura could have sworn she saw relief on his face when Ino had stopped her from running away and she saw something else when Ino gave them that lame excuse for leaving and then inviting him to eat with them. She quickly shook her head to stop her thoughts from leading her down that route. Sakura didn't know much about him but she could tell he was a total playboy. Even though she was almost certain of that she still wanted to know him.

She liked how his mere presence was overpowering yet was softened somewhat by his hair and eyes that reminded her of the clearest skies. Sakura felt that he hid behind that strong exterior; something must have happened to make him so guarded. Strangely, Grimmjow reminded Sakura of herself. She briefly thought back on what had happened at the beginning of the summer and willed her bad thoughts away. She knew it was too much to ask for, but she hoped that he would be waiting for her when class ended even if it was to turn down the invitation for lunch. After avoiding him for the last two weeks, Sakura realized that she wanted to see more of him.

When class was dismissed and Sakura put away her belongings, it wasn't until then that she noticed she had taken out the wrong notes. She laughed at herself for being distracted to that point. As she exited the classroom she saw the person she had been secretly hoping to see standing out in the hallway waiting for her. When Grimmjow saw her look of surprise he gave her a real smile and shook his head before dragging her away from the crowd.

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

As they walked to the Union, Grimmjow couldn't help but stare in wonder at Pink. When she saw him waiting for her after class she had been completely surprised, but then he saw what could only be interpreted as relief wash over her. Pink had been glad to see him there and that gave him the slightest bit of hope that he might be able to win her over. Then when he told her that he would be joining them for lunch he saw her try to hide the smile that threatened to reveal itself.

He was further intrigued as he saw her talk animatedly about her friends and offer warnings about some of them. He made a mental note of everything she said; he had already met her closest friend Ino, and he thought that was a good thing since Blondie was okay in his book. It was because of her that today had been possible. They had all known each other for almost their whole lives and were incredibly close. That was the main reason they planned to attend the same university together and had even managed to live in the same complex. Grimmjow wondered what families Pink and her friends came from if they had managed to pull those kinds of strings.

Then he remembered her last name, Sakura Haruno, and something clicked. _It could not possibly be that Haruno— can it? _He wouldn't outright ask her but in their circle there was only one Haruno that he knew of, Atsushi Haruno, the incredibly wealthy banker. He remembered his father mentioned several years back that he was married to a beautiful woman and had a daughter that looked just like her. If Pink was that daughter, her not flaunting her family's status was a good sign. He could count in one hand the people he had met in their circle that didn't— his roommate Tōshirō was among those few and that was why Grimmjow could tolerate him… he also had to admit the kid wasn't that bad.

Inside the Union he saw not much had changed since he had last been there; small groups of girls sitting together were scattered by the entrance and as soon as he walked in with Pink he felt all eyes on them followed by furious whispers. It reminded him of precisely why he had stopped going there in the first place and opted for eating off campus or at the apartment. When he glanced over at the envy of the other females, he saw that she had not noticed the attention she was getting and had a smile on her face. Grimmjow felt the tug of half a smile on his lips.

As they approached the heart of the Union he saw a large group gathered at the northernmost corner; Grimmjow had never seen a large group appear so… _happy_. When a few of them noticed their arrival he heard them call out to the pink haired female.

"Sakura," a lavender eyed girl said as she approached them. He had never seen eyes like hers and her dark blue hair was another distinct characteristic; she looked almost doll-like.

"Hinata," Pink called the other girl as they hugged, "I haven't seen you all week."

Hinata nodded when they pulled away, "Since our last movie night but we will be getting together again on Friday. I believe this time it's at your apartment?" Grimmjow thought her voice matched the softness of her features perfectly.

Pink seemed to think for a moment. "You're right, it's our turn." When Hinata glanced briefly in his direction Pink took it as her cue for introduction. "Hinata, this is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Grimmjow this is another one of my closest friends, Hinata Hyūga."

He recognized the last name immediately it was just as he had thought. The Hyūga extended her hand towards him and he took it. "Nice to meet you, Grimmjow," then she smiled and thoughts of sunshine invaded his mind. He could only attempt to smile back.

Pink then proceeded to the person behind Hinata. "This is-"

"Tosh," he said for her and she looked at him questioningly. "He's my roommate," he answered her unasked question.

"Jaegerjaquez, never thought I'd see you here," the shorter male said as he looked in Hinata's direction.

It did not go unnoticed by Grimmjow and he lifted his eyebrow in question. "Is she the one-" Tōshirō quickly cleared his throat to interrupt him. The younger male had been spending less time at the apartment lately and when Grimmjow jokingly suggested it was due to a girl, Tōshirō quickly denied it. If the blush on his face now was any indication, the white haired male had been lying. He smirked and shrugged his shoulders to show his roommate that it was no big deal. The girl is very pretty at least he has good taste.

As they approached the table he saw that they were already eating. "Hinata tries to feed us at least once a week, it is a fairly large group but she loves doing it for some reason. None of us complain though because _nobody_ can cook like she can." Laid out on the table he saw several trays packed with food and it all looked delicious, he felt his mouth water. Pink saw the look on his face and giggled.

A brunette stood up from her place and quickly embraced Pink in a hug. She pulled her away a bit from the rest of the group, "Somehow I'm not surprised to see him with you, did you finally give up on trying to avoid him?" She teased in a hushed voice but Grimmjow was still able to hear the conversation. He heard the brunette laugh and he turned to see that Pink had turned, well… pink.

He finally recognized the brunette, he vaguely remembered seeing her at the apartment when he had gone to return the MP3 player. "Grimmjow, this is my other roommate and best friend Tenten Xié." She looked to where Tenten had been sitting and she signaled one by one as she said their names. "That's her boyfriend Sasuke Uchiha, next to him is Shikamaru Nara, Chōji Akimichi, then Tatsuki Arisawa, Orihime Inoue, Uryū Ishida, the tall one is-"

"You can just call him Chad," an orange haired guy interrupted and Pink laughed.

"The strawberry is Ichigo Kurosaki and the tiny girl sitting on his lap is his girlfriend Rukia Kuchiki."

"You're one to talk," the strawberry told Pink as he gestured towards her hair and she rolled her eyes.

"Anyway," she said as she continued pointing out the people gathered around the table. "The loud-mouth next to them is Naruto Uzumaki and next to him is-" Pink stared between the blonde and the brunette with piercings blankly.

The little one named Rukia nudged Naruto hard enough to almost knock him off his chair. "Hey, what was _that_ for?" The loud mouth exclaimed. _She sure wasn't lying when she said he was loud_.

"You haven't introduced your friend to us, idiot." She stated obviously.

"A few of us have met him already but you don't bring somebody new to the group as a whole and not introduce him." Shikamaru interjected. "Geez, if I didn't know any better I'd swear nobody taught you any manners."

"Yeah, stupid you were too preoccupied over stuffing your face with Hinata's food," Sasuke offered and most of the table laughed.

"Don't be greedy, Uzumaki! Leave some for everybody." Chōji said while still chewing the food in his mouth.

"He's our roommate, Kiba Inuzuka." The Uchiha introduced him and the brunette waved his hand in a peace sign as greeting towards the group. Grimmjow was still debating whether the red fang-like markings on each of his cheeks were tattoos or birthmarks.

Naruto had just put another piece of rolled egg omelet in his mouth. Grimmjow wasn't sure if he had actually chewed his food before he swallowed and reached for another. "Well, you can't blame me! Oh man Hinata, nobody can cook like you can! If it were up to me I'd go over to your apartment everyday so I can get some of your homemade meals!"

"What are you talking about, you practically live there! You spend more time there than I do!" The one he remembered was Tatsuki pointed at him accusingly. Grimmjow saw Naruto flinch slightly at her tone and Grimmjow thought the smaller girl was gonna beat him up. He remembered Blondie had mentioned a Tatsuki and something about a dojo. If this was the girl she had mentioned he was sure she could do it; something about her body gave it away.

The voluptuous girl sitting next to her tried to get the little pistol to sit down. "But, we don't mind him going over," she protested.

"You and Hinata are too nice, Orihime, that's why he takes advantage of it." Inoue pulled on her arm again when she looked about ready to jump over the several tables between her and Uzumaki.

"Now I know where you have been disappearing to. You lied when you said you were training at the Arisawa Dojo." Sasuke confronted Naruto.

Tatsuki scoffed, "_Please_, as if he would set foot in my dad's dojo. He wouldn't survive even _one_ session with me as his sensei. Even little Hanabi has more guts and skills than you do!" At that a collective "oh" was heard throughout the group. Her anger aimed at the blonde had completely disappeared now that she was making fun of him and Grimmjow was almost convinced that this was a routine occurrence.

Pink leaned closer to him, "Hanabi is Hinata's younger sister. She is a sophomore in high school and has been training with Tatsuki for years. Their cousin Neji Hyūga is a martial arts prodigy and has had Tatsuki's father as his sensei for a while now— even Hinata is quite gifted." Grimmjow looked over at the Hyūga who smiled warmly as she talked with Tōshirō and had to admit he found it a little hard to believe, but then again looks could be deceiving. "Most of us have trained at the dojo at some point."

He looked at Pink inquisitively, yes she looked kind of small but he remembered how toned her body had looked and wondered if she could put up a fight. As his lip curled up in a smirk, Pink blushed before quickly turning away, no doubt she figured where his thoughts had strayed. Grimmjow looked around the group— their talking had been reduced to a buzz as his thoughts drifted— and recognized their last names when he recalled them. Everybody that attended this university had to have some sort of wealth or fame, if not they wouldn't have been admitted in the first place, but he realized that most of them were at the top of the food chain. The people surrounding him were the Elites. The Hyūgas, there could only be one family they were referring to and the same thing with the Uchiha. He had finally met the heir to the Ishida conglomerate, the Kuchiki family was practically royalty, and he couldn't forget about Pink.

He only had to ask one question and his deductions would be confirmed. "Is Tatsuki's father _the_ Seto Arisawa?" Pink didn't turn to look at him and only nodded slightly. He was still unsure of what to think regarding this group of very interesting people. The one thing he was convinced of was that if they had not flaunted their identities like anybody else in their position would surely have, they were definitely not like the type of people he had been forced to deal with.

"Naruto, you better not have finished the omelet!" He became aware of his surroundings once again when he heard Blondie's voice and saw that she had the loud-mouth in some sort of choke-hold. Naruto, fang boy, the strawberry, and mini-me had already moved and added another table with chairs for the newcomers.

Pink pulled on his arm as she led him to their seats and then grabbed a pair of chopsticks for him before she got her own. He couldn't help but smile inwardly. "Then you should be glad we brought more food," Grimmjow heard another female's voice behind him.

A new tray filled with food was placed in front of them followed by another. "You're a lifesaver, Hanabi, and no Naruto you can't have any more. You probably ate everybody's share!" Blondie exclaimed as she punched him in the shoulder. Naruto laughed sheepishly, he heard the Nara mumble "troublesome", and saw Blondie send him a warning glare.

The younger girl walked quickly towards Hinata and embraced her tightly. She then ruffled his roommate's hair affectionately. "Shiro, good to see you have taken over my cousin's job and refuse to leave my sister's side."

"It's Tōshirō, Hanabi," the white haired boy corrected, completely disregarding her other comment.

"Hanabi," Hinata scolded lightly. The younger Hyūga started to make her way around the table to greet the rest.

Grimmjow didn't notice the tall brunette with long, sleek hair until he was standing next to Hinata. She looked up at the brunette with eyes that were almost identical to hers and pulled gently on his arm. "Neji, grab a chair and sit next to me." The males on either side of the Hyūga exchanged nods. _So this must be the Hyūga prodigy_.

Blondie pulled up a chair between fang boy and Pink. Before she sat down she extended her hand towards the brunette and gave her most disarming smile, "Ino Yamanaka." The girl was dangerous.

He took it and introduced himself as he gave one of his own refusing to be one up'd by her. "Kiba Inuzuka pleased to meet you, Ino." In the brief greeting Grimmjow got the feeling that Blondie had met her match.

"Hey Sparkler, aren't you supposed to be in school? Are you skipping so early in the year?" Naruto asked Hanabi when she was between him and mini-me. Grimmjow saw a vein twitch beside her left eye. _Sparkler?_

"If you _must_ know, no I am not skipping school— I spent the morning at the office _because _of school. Afterwards, I stopped by the dojo to get Neji so we could make a pit stop and bring _more_ food because _you_ always eat _more_ than your share, idiot!" _Feisty…_ She introduced herself to Kiba and hugged Ino. "Who's your friend?" She asked Pink as she pulled away from the embrace.

"This is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Grimm, this is Hanabi Hyūga." He saw the brief flash of recognition cross her expression at the mention of his last name and was glad when she didn't mention it.

"Nice to meet you, Grimmjow, haven't been scared off by Naruto yet?" He wasn't sure what she meant by it and thought that she was joking, but when he looked at her he saw a brief warning. He'd have to find out about what she meant later.

"What's that supposed to mean, Bottle Rocket?" The loud blonde asked. Grimmjow noticed earlier the glances he snuck towards Pink and didn't like it. It all began to click.

"No," he answered. "I'll stick around as long as Pink wants me to." The one in question looked at him in surprise and when he looked back at the youngest of the Hyūga he saw that she was satisfied with his answer.

She quickly pulled up a chair between him and Neji then sat down to eat. "Pink, huh?" She asked in afterthought. "I like it."

He chuckled and handed her a pair of chopsticks. Hanabi Hyūga was something else— for being so young she was a lot more mature than she looked. If he stuck around he wondered what their relationship would turn out to be.

"Try the omelet and the meat. I can assure you that you have never tasted anything like it." Hanabi suggested sounding confident.

He grabbed a piece of meat and popped it in his mouth. Upon contact with his taste buds there was an explosion of flavor unlike anything he had tasted before. He could have sworn his eyes rolled to the back of his head; she was right he had never tasted anything this good. On either side he heard Pink and Hanabi laugh; his reaction must have shown his approval. "It's like-"

"-an orgasm in your mouth," she finished for him.

"Hanabi!" everybody chided at the same time. He laughed at her choice of words but because he was thinking along those lines. Everybody else laughed with him then.

"What, that's what Hidan compared it to and it's not like I would know." She defended.

"You've been spending too much time around Hidan," the two Hyūgas said simultaneously.

"Yeah, yeah," she answered them. Hanabi gave him a piece of the omelet to try and he had the same reaction; if this had all been made by Hinata, Tōshirō was one lucky guy.

Everybody continued to talk amongst themselves while eating; Hinata between the male Hyūga and Tosh as well as including Hanabi and Tenten from time to time, the Uchiha stayed silent for the most part. The ones furthest away from him talked over each other constantly; the strawberry constantly bickered with his girlfriend, Ishida, and the lethal weapon— as he remembered Tatsuki. Blondie and Kiba looked like they were getting along very well, and for the most part he had Pink's undivided attention which is what he really wanted. Hanabi preferred to join in on their conversation versus the rest of the group and oddly enough he did not mind one bit.

The food was practically gone and he saw one last piece of omelet on the tray. He reached for it only to clash with two other chopsticks going for it too. When he followed the arm that had reached for his food he saw it was the strawberry. Neither was willing to give it up.

"I saw it first, Grimm_jaw_."

"How original, Strawberry, did you come up with that all by _yourself_?" Oh no, he was _not_ letting him take the last piece. He heard the others snicker and his girlfriend the munchkin burst out laughing.

"Laugh it up all you want, we'll see who is left laughing when I get the last _piece_!" He did some crazy maneuvering with his chopsticks and just like that the last piece was gone. Grimmjow was still in shock as he looked at the strawberry chewing at an incredibly slow pace flaunting the fact that he had outwitted him. He almost growled in annoyance.

"Whoa, calm down there King of the Beasts," Hanabi said next to him as she tried to get him to clam down. "Nobody has been able to beat him, not even the blockhead over there," she pointed as she referred to Naruto and he yelled a 'hey' in complaint. "Ichigo _always_ gets the last piece."

The strawberry was looking smug and Grimmjow hoped the food made him sick. He felt a soft hand on his right arm. "Grimmjow," he gave his undivided attention to his favorite girl. "He didn't get the last piece." She blushed as she lifted the last piece of omelet with her chopsticks and offered to feed it to him. He smiled from ear to ear.

"Hey, Sakura that's not fair he's the new guy!" Ichigo protested.

Grimmjow opened his mouth and leaned into her slightly trembling hand. He exaggerated his mouth movements so only she was able to see and heard her breath hitch. He chewed his food thoroughly without breaking eye contact until he was finished; then he leaned closer and brushed her hair behind her ear. He felt the shiver that spread across her body at the contact and to say that he enjoyed it was an understatement. "That was the best egg omelet I've ever had." She inhaled quickly and when she exhaled her breath ghosted across his skin. She quickly swept her tongue across her lips to moisten them and Grimmjow had never before had to fight the urge to kiss somebody like he did then.

Behind her he heard somebody cough and when he looked up he saw it had been Blondie. He send her a grateful look; if they had remained that way for much longer he would have taken action and she nodded in understanding. He discreetly looked around the group and saw that not many besides Blondie had seen what had happened. Tenten and her serious boyfriend were the first he noticed looking his way, while she looked almost excited for her friend, the Uchiha shot him a warning look and Grimmjow wondered what that was about. Orihime, Hanabi as well as Hinata had also noticed— the Hyūga kept on looking between them and Naruto sympathetically. Pink was looking at him in a dazed manner as if still unsure of what had transpired between them.

As their lunch time was almost over, the group gradually began to decrease as they went their separate ways, but before doing so they all agreed to meet up again for lunch the following day and if not then for their next movie night. The first to leave was Ishida and Chad followed by Naruto, the Nara and Chōji. Blondie volunteered Kiba to walk her wherever she was going and he offered no protest. The strawberry and the munchkin left soon after but not before the guy demanded a rematch from him the following day and he gladly accepted the challenge. Grimmjow was actually glad that he was welcome to come back and when Pink didn't say "no" he definitely took that as a good sign.

The one he remembered was Tenten leaned against her boyfriend and wrapped her arm around his waist, the Uchiha leaned his head against hers as he whispered only something she could hear. While the display was minimal he could still see the connection between the two. He could tell neither one was big on public affection, but when he looked at Pink he saw the downward spiral her mood was headed towards. Grimmjow wondered what the story was behind them; he had never seen such a sad look in her eyes and he wanted nothing more than for it to go away. Grimmjow lightly graced the side of her hip and when she looked at him he saw the dazed look fade as whatever memories had come back to her drifted away.

"You okay?" He mouthed the words.

Sakura looked back at the couple one more time then angled her body towards him and gave him a sad smile as she barely nodded. That smile said more to him than if she had actually told him. He saw her eyes had become glossy and she preferred to look at his right arm that now rested atop the back of her chair. He lifted his left hand and placed it on her head ruffling her hair gently, conveying his understanding the only way he knew how. Pink angled her head up and smiled at him honestly— the message had been received loud and clear.

When they remembered that they were not alone and regarded the remainder of the group, they saw that all eyes were on them; the couple on the opposite side had long pulled away from each other and Pink fidgeted beside him. Grimmjow gave his trademark smirk he was not going to hide his interest in her, better they know from the start. "Ready to go?" He asked his companion. She consented and he stood up first then helped her to her feet.

"Hey, King of the Beasts," Hanabi called out to him once they were standing. "We will see you again, right?" She tried to hide the hopefulness from her voice but he still caught it.

He ruffled her hair in a way an older brother would his younger sibling. "You can bet on it, Fury." She didn't protest at his choice of nickname and only grinned widely. Grimmjow realized his feelings of acceptance towards her were mutual.

They said their goodbyes and walked out of the Union in silence. Once outside, Grimmjow felt that Pink wanted to tell him something but he refused to ask unless she spoke first. Finally giving in she gave an exasperated sigh, "Thank you for- for whatever you did in there."

Grimmjow laughed and he pulled her suddenly to his side in an embrace as they continued walking side by side, the flush he loved to see on her rosy complexion was a tell-tale sign of her nervousness. "Don't mention it." Her expression started to shift again to what he had seen earlier and he halted. He turned her so they were face to face and he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Pink," when she didn't look up he tried again. "Sakura," he lifted her chin gently until their eyes met. The pained look he saw hurt him, "Look, he's a fucking idiot if he let someone like you pass him by."

He had used those same words countless times before, yet every single one of those times they had been meaningless. He found that now when he truly and honestly meant them, they had escaped his lips before he had even realized what he said. He wished with all his might that this one time when it _really_ counted, the one that _really_ mattered believed him.

Grimmjow saw the threat of tears in her eyes and he did the only thing he could think of, he pulled her flush against his body and hugged her tightly. He heard her gasp and stand unmoving in his arms. He thought she was going to pull away and all he knew was that he didn't want her to. She finally lifted her arms slowly and hugged him tightening her hold on him until he could feel her desperation.

He loved the feel of the much smaller woman in his arms, she fit so perfectly. He felt that what had started as a game was fast becoming something serious to the point where he would not be able to walk away. The more Grimmjow dwelled into her world, the more he wanted to become a part of it. He had never known anything like it— the friendship, the solidarity, the _warmth_— he had been alone for so long. Whenever she was around he felt that the false identity he had created for himself came crumbling down. She was extremely dangerous and never before had Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez been afraid of anyone.

ͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻͻ

Sakura did not know how it had turned out like this. She had been avoiding him for the past two weeks because this was _precisely_ what she did not want to happen. Now she was being comforted in his arms, stunned that he had figured out her most painful secret without any words being shared. He was rough around the edges but she knew that there was a side of him that Grimmjow kept hidden from everyone else, and she as well as her friends had seen a small part of that side. She was sure even he was not aware that he had allowed them a glimpse and she felt privileged to have been permitted to see it.

So close to his body she could hear that his heart was beating as fast as hers and she relaxed a little; his thoughts were probably just as hectic. She inhaled his scent— he smelled of something wild and untamed— it was so like Grimmjow. She had never been embraced by a male other than Kyo but he was like a brother to her, and now that she was being held like this it felt so different… it felt so right to be held protectively by Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. She embraced him as tightly as she could, hoping her feelings would reach him.

Sakura was afraid— she _did not_ want to fall for Grimmjow but if they kept on this way she was certain there would be no choice left in the matter. That realization terrified her and her body trembled involuntarily.

Grimmjow must have taken it the wrong way. "What's wrong?" He asked and she could detect the slightest hint of panic underlying his voice.

It was only until then that she realized something else that made her heart soar, and with difficulty she raised her head to look at him— his hold on her was near suffocating but she didn't mind it. Her eyes met light blue and she was speechless for a moment; she could almost see everything she was feeling reflected on them, Grimmjow was just as afraid as she was.

She smiled at him in a way she hoped would reassure him. "Nothing, you just called me by my name."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think so far. I have been wanting to do some fan art for my stories for a while now. I have searched online but have been unable to find anything that is even remotely similar to my stories. I have yet to see any fan art with SakuGrimm, ByuakuHina, or UkiHina! It's so sad…. I wouldn't even know where to start but I have so many ideas that are just begging to come out. If any of you have any experience with this I would be incredibly grateful if you could give me some tips. I would really, really want to do something. Thank you for your constant support it's because of your feedback that all this is possible.

**-Wyvernhail**


End file.
